


Never a Coincidence

by httydfangirl123



Category: How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Deathsong amber, F/M, Originally Posted on FanFiction.Net, RTTE season 4, Torture, Whump
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-15
Updated: 2018-08-17
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:49:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24681820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/httydfangirl123/pseuds/httydfangirl123
Summary: After an apparently coincidental encounter with a rogue pack of dragons, Hiccup and Astrid find that their flight together ends up with Hiccup covered in Deathsong amber and unable to move. Astrid has no choice but to get Inferno from the Edge, but when she gets back, Hiccup is gone and the evidence leads her to believe that the past events weren't unintentional.
Relationships: Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III/Astrid Hofferson
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

"You do realise how many dragons this plan is going to cost us?"

"Yes, but trust me. It will be worth it. The sacrifice will be rewarded by triple the amount we gave away."

"Are you sure this is going to work?"

"He won't dare hurt them. No matter what. And your men have trained them to do what we've planned. Nothing will go wrong."

"If you say so..."

~~~

This is Dragon's Edge. Mornings here are usually cold, windy and wet, with afternoons being only a few degrees warmer and a few dewdrops less. But if you asked either Hiccup or Astrid, they would use words like fresh, breezy and beautiful. They both loved watching the sunrise with the wind in their face, skimming the water so droplets splattered onto their clothes and flying at top speed through the clouds. And each other. Which made them the perfect team for an early morning date, oh sorry, mission. At least, Astrid seemed to think it was a date. She held Hiccup's hand, playfully splashed water onto his face and challenged him to races.

"Well, you're in a good mood, milady," Hiccup commented, beaming as he wiped the droplets of water off his cheek.

"It's not every day that I get to be on a mission with you, just the two of us and the sunrise," Astrid beamed back, adding a little wink at the end. Hiccup laughed.

"I'd love to have some fun, and I'm sure we can fit in a sunrise date tomorrow morning, but right now, we have to stay on task," Hiccup countered, though he hated the fact that he might be ruining his girlfriend's fun. "We should be coming up to the area we have to investigate the hunter activity." Astrid nodded reluctantly, smile falling slightly. But then she spotted something that caught her attention.

"Uh... Hiccup? Since when did wild Scauldrons, Nadders, Thunderdrums and Razorwhips fly in packs together?" Astrid asked, eyes still fixated on what she'd spotted. Hiccup looked at her in confusion.

"What? Never! Wild Razorwhips would never get along with wild Thunderdrums, and that's just one of the reasons they wouldn't fly together unless trained!" Hiccup exclaimed, still not realising Astrid was watching the pack as they spoke.

"That's what I thought. Because that pack looks pretty wild to me," Astrid pointed to the right, where a pack of ten dragons flew towards them. Hiccup saw what she was talking about and pulled out his spyglass, holding it to his eye and focussing the lens.

"Whatever they're doing, they look pretty riled up." Hiccup commented, then paused. "You're right, they are wild... which begs the question: why are they flying together? Maybe they-"

"Hiccup, you're missing something," Astrid interrupted, looking at her boyfriend with concern.

"What?"

"They're flying right towards us,"

"And?"

"Unless you plan on getting us both killed, I think we'd better fly out of the way," Astrid replied, raising her voice in panic as the dragon roars became louder and louder. Hiccup hesitated, looking from Astrid back to the dragons. He knew he couldn't train all ten of them at once, and he rather liked having his three remaining limbs.

"You're right, let's go," Hiccup said, just as a burst of boiling water shot past his head. Toothless and Stormfly immediately flew in the other direction, dodging the dragons' blasts.

"Why are they attacking us?" Astrid shouted to Hiccup over the noise of the constant firing. Magnesium fire spot between them, causing their dragons to swerve apart.

"I don't know," Hiccup shouted back, clicking Toothless' tail fin so that they made a barrel roll before flying back towards Stormfly and Astrid. The two dragons stopped abruptly as a Thunderdrum appeared in front of them. Hiccup looked around, noticing that the pack of dragons had surrounded them, a Scauldron to their left, a Nadder beneath them, a Razorwhip above them and a Thunderdrum in front. And if the roars coming from behind him meant anything, turning around wasn't an option either.

"What now?" Astrid asked as both Toothless and Stormfly hovered on the spot where they were trapped.

"We don't really have much of a choice," Hiccup called back, steering Toothless towards the gap to their right. Astrid followed suit, manoeuvring between the sonic blasts, bursts of boiling water and fire. The rogue dragon pack followed them, flying either side of them as if channelling them.

"Where are they steering us?" Hiccup shouted, thinking aloud.

"I don't know, but I'm thinking maybe we can hide in that cave and wait them out. They can't chase us if we're in there." Astrid replied, pointing to a hole in a large sea stack further ahead. Hiccup nodded and both of the riders encouraged their dragons to fly faster, hoping they would make it without singed body parts.

A few near misses later, the two riders directed their dragons into the cave.  
"That was weird," Hiccup commented, after letting out a sigh of relief. He looked behind him at the cave opening, only for his face to fall when he saw all ten of the dragons hovering just outside the entrance. "Oh no, what are they going to do now?" Astrid turned, just in time to see the answer to her boyfriend's question. The dragons shot at the cave, causing the rocks to collapse on their only chance of escape. The couple flinched as the noise echoed through the cave. The commotion finally stopped, and the couple looked at each other worriedly. Hiccup hopped off his dragon and started pacing the cave.

"Great. So much for getting to the hunter activity... now we're stuck here," Hiccup muttered. Astrid watched as he walked up and down the width of the cave, biting her lip as she realised that she had suggested they go into the cave. She looked around, noticing how they stood in a large opening that split off into two smaller tunnels. _Wait... why isn't it pitch black in here if the entrance is sealed?_

"Uhh, Hiccup?"

"Yeah?" Hiccup looked up at her midstep, hand on his chin as he thought.

"Look down there," Astrid pointed to the two tunnels that went off from the big opening. "It's quite light. If this entrance was the only one then we would be standing in darkness. But because it's light-"

"...there must be another entrance!" Hiccup finished her sentence, face brightening up. "Astrid, you're a genius!" He ran towards her, only to stopped by Astrid's finger, which was perfectly placed on his lips.

"I know what you're thinking of doing, Dragon Boy. Save it, you can thank me and kiss me all you like once we're out of here," Astrid teased, removing her finger from Hiccup's mouth and winking at him. Hiccup laughed, surprised at how mischievous she was acting. "Now, which tunnel do we take?" She asked on a more serious note.

"Well, the one on the right is slightly brighter, so I'd say that'd be our best bet at getting out of here quickly," Hiccup thought out loud. Astrid nodded in agreement, so the four set off. For minutes, all that could be heard was their feet and talons hitting the stone floor as they plodded. The tunnel just started getting brighter, when a strange noise echoed. Toothless' ears perked up, Stormfly cocked her head slightly and Astrid froze. Hiccup, apparently not having heard the noise, looked at them incredulously. "What's wrong?"

"That noise," Astrid whispered, her face displaying shock and fear.

"What noise? That was just an echo, probably nothing to worry about!" Hiccup replied, brushing it off.

"No, Hiccup. That noise was a Deathsong call. I'm sure of it," Astrid countered, looking around her cautiously.

"A Deathsong? In a cave? Why would a dragon like that be here? Shouldn't it be back on Melody Island?" Hiccup exclaimed in disbelief.

"I don't know," Astrid whispered, just as the noise came again, louder this time, causing Toothless to growl and Stormfly's spines to stand on end. Both riders stared at where the noise was coming from, Astrid wielding her axe threateningly. And sure enough, from around the corner, an extremely angry Deathsong appeared, standing on its hind legs and roaring loudly.

"No... it can't be! Why is it here? What-" Hiccup was stopped short of his thought track when a burst of hot amber forces him to jump out of the way and onto Toothless.

"Maybe we can discuss what it's doing here after we make sure we don't end up covered in that amber?" Astrid commented, jumping onto Stormfly. "Let's try and get past it and then we can fly out of the tunnel, I think it's wide enough to fly through now." Hiccup nodded, clicking his prosthetic into the tail fin mechanism. Astrid took off first, dodging the amber that the Deathsong aimed at her, making a barrel roll to avoid the dragon's attempt to stop them getting past. Stormfly landed on the other side, Astrid watching nervously as the Deathsong engaged Toothless, constantly shooting amber at them. Hiccup steered Toothless the way Astrid had escaped, only to collide with their opponent's tail, which knocked Hiccup off Toothless' back. Pain shot through his head as it hit the stone floor and he grunted, trying to get up, but then he felt a hot sticky liquid touch him. Time seemed to slow down to him, but despite all his struggles, he soon found himself encased in rock hard amber which rendered him immobile.

"Hiccup!" He heard Astrid shout. He looked up to see Toothless, whose stomach was also covered in the orange substance, firing plasma blasts at the Deathsong, who didn't hesitate to retreat. As soon as the dragon left, Astrid jumped off Stormfly and ran towards him. "Are you alright?"

"Apart from the imminent bruise on the back of my head and the fact that I can't move a muscle, yeah I'm fine," Hiccup answered from where he lay on his back.

"Do you have Inferno with you?" Astrid asked as she knelt down beside her trapped boyfriend. Hiccup looked thoughtful for a moment, then his face fell.

"Oh my Thor, how did I forget Inferno on the one day I really need it?" He exclaimed in exasperation. "Stupid, Hiccup, stupid." He muttered to himself. Astrid sighed, then wrapped her arms around the amber block that imprisoned her boyfriend. "What are you doing?" Hiccup asked, utterly confused as she tried to pick him up.

"Trying to get you onto Toothless' back," She replied as she stopped straining for a moment to catch her breath.

"Astrid, there's no point. I can't balance or steer Toothless if I'm stuck in this stuff, and Toothless probably can't even fly with that heavy amber around his body," Hiccup sighed, formulating a plan in his mind. "You and Stormfly go back to the Edge and get Inferno. I'll stay here with Toothless." Astrid hesitated, clearly not wanting to leave the two alone so defenceless. "Astrid, I'll be fine. The amber doesn't stop Toothless shooting plasma blasts if anything comes at us. Besides, there's not really any other way to get out of here, is there?"

"You've got a point," Astrid admitted, standing up and looking at Toothless, who was trying to scratch the rock-hard substance. "Fine, but promise me you'll be alright," She bent down to kiss Hiccup on the cheek.

"I'll be fine, milady. I'm not going anywhere and I have Toothless," He smiled up at her as she jumped onto Stormfly and followed the light out of the cave. Hiccup's smile faded the minute his girlfriend left, plagued by the nagging thought that something was up. _First, a pack of rogue dragons that don't normally mix steer us into here and trap us in this cave. Second, a Deathsong that belongs on Melody Island attacks us and leaves me immobile, and then it leaves as soon as I'm caught... That can't all be a coincidence... can it? But if it isn't... who did this? He didn't have to think much longer for his brain to realise who it was. Viggo? But how did he put all this together? And what can he gain from me being in this cave...? No, no, no, he isn't going to attack the Edge, is he? He'd better not... At least Astrid will be going to help them out. I just hope they can hold out without me..._ Toothless woke him out of his thoughts by licking his face and purring, sensing his rider's distress.

"I know bud, there's nothing we can do but wait. Besides, who says Viggo has anything to do with this?" He told his dragon, wishing he could reach up and stroke the dragon.

But Viggo did have something do with it... more than he imagined...


	2. Chapter 2

Hiccup wasn't sure how long he had been waiting, only that it felt like a long time. Toothless had gotten bored of licking him long ago, deciding that sleeping was a better option. And honestly, sleep was tempting. But he wasn't exactly in a very comfortable position, and even if he could sleep, he probably wouldn't want to. What if Astrid came back and couldn't find her way back to him? Then he would have to guide her back with his voice, which was hard to do when asleep. He had tried to pass the time with thinking, for example, what he could be happening on the Edge at that moment and how the Riders could defend themselves against an attack. But soon, he found himself drifting off, despite his discomfort and will to stay away.

**_Squawk!_ **

The echo of a Nadder's call woke him up, a hopeful smile on his face when he realised that Astrid was back with Inferno. _Phew! Hopefully, that means that I was wrong about Viggo attacking the Edge..._

"Astrid? Thank Thor you're here! I thought that Viggo would be attacking the Edge right now," Hiccup called out in relief. He listened for an answer, but furrowed his forehead in confusion when he heard nothing but footsteps. "Astrid?" He heard his voice echo through the cave, bouncing back to him a dozen times, drowning out the sound of footsteps momentarily. _What? Astrid wouldn't ignore me, would she? Why isn't she replying? Is she okay? Maybe Viggo got her..._

"Oh, Hiccup. That is so typically you, isn't it?" A new echo found its way to his ears, and his heart fell when he realised that he'd got it all wrong. "Thinking about others before you think about yourself. Saving others before you save yourself. Getting worried that your friends are under attack when in actual fact, you're the one in danger." Viggo. Hiccup's eyes widened in shock as his enemy revealed himself from behind the corner, smirking triumphantly. "You know, Hiccup, there's a lot of irony in nature, especially if you look at a dragon's hunting habits. Some dragons, Night Terrors, for example, pretend to be bigger than they are, and that is their strategy for hunting and self-defence. But a strategy that is less common in the dragon world, is pretending to be smaller or more friendly than reality. If a dragon thinks it's got an easy catch, the predator can lure it in, and then strike when it least expects it. And I think you know which one I used. It's so easy to catch prey when it thinks that you are a friend." Viggo paused, walking towards Hiccup smugly. The young Viking glanced at Toothless, wondering why he hadn't woken up yet. _Come on Toothless... I could really use a well-aimed plasma blast right now..._ Viggo caught the pleading glance at his Night Fury and chuckled slightly.

"You're really not thinking well, are you Hiccup? Wondering why your dragon won't wake up? Don't worry, Toothless won't be interfering anytime soon," He smirked, nodding to a guard behind him, who shot an arrow towards the Night Fury. Hiccup watched helplessly as the arrow pierced his dragon's hide, causing him to roar in shock, then collapse as the dragon root entered his bloodstream and overwhelmed his senses.

"What do you want, Viggo? What are you doing?" Hiccup glared at the man who stood in front of him.

"What am I doing? I am using dragons, the reptiles that you are working to rescue, against you. I assume you were clever enough to realise that the rogue pack of dragons wasn't a coincidence?" Viggo raised an eyebrow at the Dragon Rider, thoroughly enjoying this. "Neither was the Deathsong, in actual fact. Though you definitely worked that one out; you of all people know that dragons live in their habitats for a reason and that being outside of said habitat can be fatal." He paused to meet Hiccup's glare. "Oh, don't worry, the Deathsong will live. We've got what we wanted now, anyway." Viggo's smirk grew as his men surrounded the Night Fury and Rider. Hiccup looked at his dragon helplessly as Toothless was chained and dragged out of the cave.

"Where are the other Riders, Viggo? What have you done to them?" He called out as a Hunter began lifting up his block of amber. Now surrounded by men who blocked his view to Viggo, he could only hear his enemy chuckle again.

"Oh, nothing yet, Hiccup. I'm sure your girlfriend is safe and sound at your base," Viggo taunted. Hiccup felt his face heat up at the mention of his girlfriend, though he soon tried to cover up his embarrassment with a glare, only to find that Viggo was behind him, following the men that dragged him out of the cave. He couldn't help but sigh. Hiccup had felt helpless before. He was not new to the experience of being tied up, but he had always found a way to escape. But escape from a block of rock-hard of amber... he couldn't even move a single muscle, let alone escape from Viggo's ship.

_I just hope Viggo doesn't hurt the other Riders... who knows what he's planning for them..._

~~~

Astrid jumped off Stormfly's back and onto the platform and sprinted into Hiccup's hut, immediately rummaging around for where Inferno would be. _Where is it? Where would Hiccup put it? Oh, come on... where is it?_

"Uh, hey Astrid, what are you doing back from your mission so early?" She heard Fishlegs' voice over the noise she was making. "And... where's Hiccup?"

"We got attacked by some dragons on our way there and now Hiccup is trapped in Deathsong amber, so I'm getting Inferno to help him," Astrid replied quickly, not looking up from the box she was searching.

"I didn't know you were going to Melody Island!"

"Neither did we. Apparently, this Deathsong got lost." Astrid snapped, the stress coming out as anger. She heard Fishlegs' footsteps moving from behind her to beside her.

"This is what you're looking for, right?" Fishlegs asked, holding up Inferno helpfully. Astrid nodded sharply, snatching the sword out of his hand and running towards her dragon. "Wait! Let us come with you! Something seems off, and even if it isn't, there's no harm done in us all going to help Hiccup." Fishlegs shouted, stopping Astrid in her tracks. The young woman paused.

"Fine, but I'm leaving in one minute sharp. If you guys aren't ready to go, I'm leaving without you," She replied, sternly as she strapped Inferno to her saddle. Fishlegs nodded and ran off, whistling for Meatlug.

"Ruff, Tuff, Snotlout, get your dragons and get ready to leave!" He shouted as he packed Meatlugs's saddle bag.

"What? Why? Aren't Hiccstrid supposed to do the mission? I need my beauty sleep!" He heard Snotlout's angry shout, followed by a moan from the twins.

"Just do it!" The large Viking shouted in reply, sterner than he intended. But it did the trick, within a minute all the Riders were there, ready to leave.

"Alright, let's go," Astrid said, nodding curtly. The dragons took off, all of them following Astrid, who shot ahead the moment they were in the air.

"Uh... Astrid?" Tuffnut enquired, raising his hand as if in a classroom. "May I ask where and why we're going?"

"We got attacked by some dragons on our way there and now Hiccup is trapped in Deathsong amber, so I'm getting Inferno to help him," Astrid replied, repeating exactly what she had told Fishlegs as they approached the sea-stack, which was very close to the Edge now they flew in a straight line (instead of the detour the dragons took them on the way there). "There's the cave," She pointed to the sea stack she and Hiccup had taken cover in. The dragons swooped down towards the entrance of the cave Astrid led them to. The female Viking jumped off Stormfly the second the dragons landed, grabbing Inferno and running down the tunnel.

"Hiccup, I'm back. Are you alright?" She called, only getting her own echo in reply. Her pace quickened to a sprint as worry filled her mind. _What's he gotten himself into now? I should never have left him alone in the cave... I could have used a terror mail. What was I thinking?_ She stopped in her tracks when she heard something snap below her. Looking down, she realised she had stepped on something. A dragon root arrow. Oh no... She looked at her surroundings, noticing the drops of hardened amber on the floor... But Hiccup was gone. Toothless was gone. She heard running footsteps behind her as the other Riders and their dragons caught up with her. There was a moment where the only sound was panting, but then Fishlegs noticed what was wrong.

"Where's Hiccup? Why isn't he here?" Fishlegs asked, looking around at the amber scattered around them.

"He's gone. They're both gone." Astrid muttered bitterly.

"But... but how? They can't move with that amber!" Fishlegs exclaimed, clearly panicking and confused. Astrid picked up the arrow on the floor and held it up so they all could see.

"Viggo..."


End file.
